FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
(Or ones that should be)
Q1: How do I confirm that I'm registered?
A: After you click “Finish” on the Cvent registration form, you will receive an automated email from the system. If you have not received confirmation of your registration, assume you are NOT registered. You can contact the institute director for information by phone (650-964-3082) or e-mail: duane@apseminars.com .
Related to this issue, be sure to read the FAQ to the right (Q2).
Q2: Can I depend on my district to promptly process my papers?
A: NO!!!!! Every year a few teachers find out that they are not going to be attending the workshop because their districts failed to process their papers in a timely fashion. They'll call a week before the workshop starts asking why they haven't heard anything yet, just to find out they're not registered because the district never sent in their papers. Worse yet, some of these teachers turn in their paper work in January or February. The same cautions hold true in regard to payment: do not assume your registration has been finalized unless you are notified that it has been.
Please note: registration deadlines refer to when PAID registrations are RECEIVED by AP* Seminars, not when they are submitted to your district. If you haven't received confirmation that you've been registered, contact your district business office or AP* Seminars (see FAQ#1) to find out your status.
Q3: Can I register after the registration deadline?
A: No guarantees. Deadlines are there for a reason (guarantees,, copying, ordering College Board materials, etc.). We may accept registration after our stated deadline but reserve the right to close registrations at any time after July 1.
Note: registration deadline is the date we must RECEIVE the registration by, not the date you submit a request to your district for funding. See the two FAQs above about checking to see whether you are registered or not.
Q4: What's the weather like in Palo Alto in July?
A: Usually comfortable but can get warm if there's a heat wave. Typically, mornings are cool and afternoons are warm (80º-85ºF) but with low humidity
Classrooms at Palo Alto High School are air conditioned.
Q5: Once I get to Palo Alto High School, where do I report?
A: Full details about the start of the institute will be in the Pre-Conerence materials sections to be published on this website on/about July 1.
Q7: Which are nicer, the (dorm) rooms at Menlo College or the rooms at the Sheraton? (Deos not apply in 2021)
A: It's a dorm! Bathrooms are shared and there is no turndown service nor chocolates on your pillow. They are clean and OK as college dorms go. The big advantage is that the total cost of staying in the dorm for the week is about one-third of what it would cost at a local hotel/motel. For a full description of the dorms, see Menlo College Dorms.
Q8: Are the classrooms close to the dorms and parking? (Does not apply in 2021)
A: There are no classrooms close to the dorm at Menlo
C
ollege because we do not have classes at Menlo College. Menlo College is located about 2.5 miles from Palo Alto HS (see Map).
There is no charge for parking at Menlo College nor at Palo Alto High School. Note that parking can sometimes be tight at Palo Alto HS, so arriving early is recommended. Even better: use a bicycle.
Q9: Are there any fees beyond those listed on the registration form?
A: The only required fee is tuition/registration, but there are some other fees you may encounter:
(a) a lunch plan is avaialble for $65 for both commuters and those staying at Menlo College
(b) lodging, including breakfast and dinner, is available at Menlo College..
*(c) If you desire college credit, you have the option of purchasing two semester graduate units (issued by University of San Diego). The fee is $158.00. You will receive information in the Pre-Conference Materials section of our website (available in early July) about how to obtain units directly from University of San Diego.
Q6: Suppose I don't bother to read the Pre-Conference Materials section discussed in Q5 above, can I just show up and find where I need to be easily?
A: It's better to read the instructions (Pre-Conference Materials)!
The Pre-Conference Materials section will have all the needed information. You should read it!
You can always, of course, contact AP* Seminars (Duane@APSeminars.com) to get clarificaton if something is not clear to you.
Q10: How are the fees for the workshop determined
A: (This applies only to on-site years) There are several participant choices that go into determining the final fees: commuter vs. on-campus resident; lunch plan or not; early, regular, or late registration, etc. The directors of AP* Seminars have a (magical) spreadsheet with the cost of each option detailed and a sum for each combination of options. If you really (really!) care about more detail than this, please contact the workshop directors.
Q11: Is there somewhere I can go to find out more about Palo Alto High School (like: where the heck is Palo Alto?)?
A: Yes. http://www.paly.net/.
Q12: What's with the cancelation fees?
A: Cancellation fees cover direct costs incurred by AP Seminars for each registration. If a class has been declared a "go," there may be no refunds within thirty days of the start (e.g. AP X has been declaared a "go" with eight registrations. A cancellation with refund would make the course financially not viable. If there were, say, twelve paid registrations, a refund would most likely be possible with the $100 cancellation fee).
Q13: Why isn’t lunch included in the tuition?
A: Not everyone wants to pay for lunch. Some bring there own, some skip it, and some may want to go off campus.
Q14a: Why are only fully paid registration accepted after July 1?
A: In most school districts, there is a significant time lag between requests for payment and the actual mailing of a payment check (and more so under pandemic conditions). Our experience is that few districts are able to process payment prior to the workshop for requests submitted after July 1. This is open to discussion (e.g., we would probably be open to an unpaid registration on, say, July 15 if we had assurances from the district that credit card payment would be made within a few days). Please contact us Duane@APSeminars.com if your situation requires later payment so we can talk about it.
Q14b: What do you mean by "Registrations unpaid as of July 1 may be subject to cancellation.?"
A: In the event a class is full and there is a waitlist, paid registrations will take precedence over unpaid registrations. If someone on the waitlist is willing to pay, you (if you have registered but not yet paid) will be given the option of either paying for your registration (at the then prevailing rate) or giving up your spot to someone else. Placement in a class is not guaranteed until all fees have been paid.
Any more FAQs you'd like to see answered here? Just let us know: